Democracy Isn't For You

"We have art in order not to die of the truth." - Nietzsche A meandering commentary on 90's period pieces, art, (R)romanticism, contradictions, realism, imagination, and the last unoccupied place - our souls.   ~ Note: this is an episode based on my recent Substack so if you'd like a written accompaniment, check out eleanorgoldfield.substack.com For more Radical Nuance content, go to Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy

The removal of DEI programs, of histories and people from government sites and policies is fucked. It's also not the catastrophe liberal media and pearl-clutchers make it out to be because these "gains" weren't the wins they were dressed up as. Diversity in the name of capitalist and colonialist violence doesn't serve the marginalized and oppressed - it really only serves the state by suggesting a progressive and inclusive facade. In short, do we want a seat at the table if all they're serving is more oppression??   In this episode, I pull from this rad piece in Prism Reports, as well as my latest Substack!   For more Radical Nuance content, go to Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy

I imagine many of you are feeling how I feel today - heartbreak was a while ago, we're beyond soul break now. And the horrors of this world can push us to be violent - as we are programmed to be, violent towards each other, towards ourselves. But what if instead we were gentle - with one another, with ourselves, and destructive towards those who would destroy us? Artist Dorgham Qreaiqea who was murdered last night by Israel inspired me to ask this of myself, of you all: Can rage take the form of gentleness? And here recognize that gentleness towards people, towards nature might sometimes require destructive action towards the architects of our oppression - that that IS in fact a form of gentleness. A gentleness if not practiced could lead us to perpetuate the violence of the system against each other… In this sense, to be gentle is a radical refusal to perpetuate that violence, to participate in the destruction of humanity and nature. It is likewise a promise, a dedication to dismantle the architecture of our oppression. To be gentle and dangerous.     * More podcasts like this along with access to more of my art at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy

In a system that creates so much pain, the demand for happiness is insidious at best. It is a cover for violence - like fresh snowfall on a toxic waste dump. Refusing this imposed demand for happiness is also then a path towards refusing the imposed structures of pain and suffering, recognizing that life must always include pain. Our goal should not be to avoid all pain but to know the difference between a pain that is a natural outgrowth of life and one that is forced upon us. I'll also dig into how the demand for happiness dehumanizes us, and those we demand it of, the importance of engaging with our pain and the pain of others, a few musings on kids, and more! Lemme know how y'all feel about the refusal of happiness.   * There are oodles more of these episodes plus great deals on art, music and movies at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy

So how's everyone holding up in this final season of America? N*zi salutes and all... Well, I've got some thoughts on that to start. In short, don't fear the theatrics of the system. This isn't a changing of the status quo, merely a revealing of it. There is much work to do, and it's ok to be scared, to be depressed -- but let's also be wary of over-romanticizing the struggle, of turning this fight into a Hollywood movie. We risk normalizing atrocities and burdening ourselves and others with the weight of the resilient hero. Let's be real about the world in which we live, which also means recognizing the beauty and the beautiful people in it...am I over-romanticizing? ;)   * Get more episodes at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy

A lot of folks understandably want organizing spaces to be spaces where harm can gain no access. But if we don't open up our spaces and ourselves to people who don't share our politics, our lived experiences, how can we actually change politics and lived experiences? This is not to say that we should make friends with the far-right. There's gotta be a line, right? And that line will look different for different people. But something we must all commit to is to get comfortable with discomfort, with the discomfort of people making mistakes, of organizing with people we don't like, seeing rather that our goals align, and we don't have to be besties. Can we build spaces that address harm without it sidelining the organizing? Can we build spaces that acknowledge that language isn't the same as knowledge, and people can both be held accountable for missteps while being embraced as community members. In short, can't you take a mistake?     More episodes available at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy To hear what the f**k Radical Nuance is, listen here: https://bit.ly/RadicalNuanceIntro   

Less than two weeks out from the oh-so-important election day, it felt an apt time to ask the question: what the hell is a vote, anyway? Some will say that it's harm reduction. That's bullshit. Others will say it's strategic. That, too, is bullshit (unless your strategy is more of the same). A vote should be something given to someone who has proven themselves worthy of it, has proven to you that they care about what you need and want from a government. But in the duopoly masquerading as democracy, it is not that. And if we're gonna vote, the least we gotta do is be clear and honest about what a vote actually is. And for those hoping to have it both ways, i.e. that a vote for Kamala isn't really a vote for Kamala, you can't have it both ways. It can't be that you're voting for someone and not really voting for them, that somehow by voting for them you're not voting for their policies. Finally, what does a 3rd party vote mean when we know they won't win? A lot to unpack, a lot to dig into and get proper filthy with the oligarchical muck of this depraved nation-state. Come along with me...

Save what we can. Change what we must. So much is already lost, and shit is dire, things are getting worse. And if reality is unacceptable, perhaps we must go beyond and not listen to the realists who say it's too late. There is no saving anything in a hierarchical paradigm, only in the mutualism and community that saves us as much as the other. Peppering in some poetry on this one since y'all said you wanted more! :)

What the hell is a democracy when the demos, the people are only the people chosen by that system? Rights aren't inherent when they're tied to a movable system of government, not least of all when that government is moving further and further to the right. So why tie our rights to a government? Why uplift democracy as a pinnacle of human achievement? What are rights without the restrictions that contain them?   More episodes available at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy To hear what the f**k Radical Nuance is, listen here: https://bit.ly/RadicalNuanceIntro 

Hope is a verb.  Hope without action is just optimism, the dangerous passivity of mutualist nihilism Hope is not the lack of despair, it is the acknowledgment of despair.  Come along as I dissect this word a bit, give a nod to those who find it unnecessary or even dangerous, and ultimately land myself in that liminal space between...    More episodes available at Patreon.com/ArtKillingApathy To hear what the f**k Radical Nuance is, listen here: https://bit.ly/RadicalNuanceIntro